What’s happening in the Legislature: While the North Dakota legislative Assembly is not in session this year, during the 63rd legislative Assembly, Senate Bill 2229 was passed which created a study committee of “the development, delivery, and administration of comprehensive early childhood care and early childhood education in [the] state.” The committee, representing child care, Head Start, higher education, public and private education, special education, advocacy groups and North Dakota state departments met four times since October 2013 and is set to deliver a report to the Legislative Management Council in June 2014.

Other recent efforts in the state: In September 2013, the North Dakota Department of Public Instruction adopted and released the state’s voluntary Pre-kindergarten Content Standards, which are aligned with the Head Start Child Outcomes Framework as well as the state’s standards for kindergarten.